Infant Bed - Use

Use

An infant bed is typically used after it is no longer safe to leave the baby in a bassinet. They have a lower center of gravity, more mass, a broader base of support and can hold a larger baby than a bassinet. Infant beds are more stable than bassinets and as such become desirable when a baby can roll, transferring inertia with their actions; a bassinet may tip, an infant bed won't without concerted effort. Around two or three years of age children are able to defeat their confinement and should be moved to a toddler bed to prevent an injurious fall while escaping their bed (falls account for 66% of emergency room admissions due to infant beds in the USA).

Placing a child into an infant bed can put strain on a caretaker's back as they typically have a mass between 11.8 kilograms (26 lb) and 16.8 kilograms (37 lb) at 36 months of age. To reduce the strain on those operating an infant bed, many infant beds feature:

• a mattress that can be in a raised position until the child is able to sit upright, and potentially lowered further when they are likely to begin standing (between 8 and 12 months).
• a drop gate (or drop side), a side which lowers to ease the process of putting the child into the bed, but can be raised again to restore the integrity of the enclosure.

  In the United States, the sale of drop gate infant beds and their use by hotels and childcare centers is prohibited following reports of assembly problems and malfunctioning hardware leading to infant deaths; all infant beds manufactured and sold are required to have fixed sides.

• casters to make it easier to move the bed around.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants under 12 months share a room (but not a bed) with their parents, as this has shown to be protective against Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Other sleep environment factors include supine positioning (back sleeping), use of a firm sleep surface, breastfeeding, consideration of a pacifier (dummy), and avoidance of soft bedding, overheating, and exposure to tobacco smoke.